Hardwood Acres, MI

Hardwood Acres is an unincorporated Benzie County community and census-designated place in eastern Almira Township, between the village of Lake Ann and the Grand Traverse County line. The CDP was first defined for the 2010 census, and the 2020 count was 393. Its name suits the setting: roads and homes spread through the township’s northern Michigan woods, with Lake Ann supplying the nearest village services and Almira Township handling local government.

School lines show how the community fits into the region. Most of Hardwood Acres is in Traverse City Area Public Schools, while a smaller section belongs to Benzie County Central Schools. Almira Township’s office and planning work sit near Lake Ann, and its recreation plan lists Pearl Lake as the township’s largest surface-water body. Grand Traverse County and Traverse City provide larger employment, shopping, and medical connections to the east. Hardwood Acres is a scattered northern Michigan residential place linked to two counties and several school systems through one township map.